


Once Upon A Time

by KilljoysNeverDie



Category: Supernatural
Genre: All Human, Alternate Universe - Human, M/M, Not Beta Read, Renaissance Faires, Swordfighting, market
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-26
Updated: 2015-11-15
Packaged: 2018-03-03 17:21:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2858846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KilljoysNeverDie/pseuds/KilljoysNeverDie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Charlie makes Sam go to a renaissance faire and leaves him alone after a short while. Here is what happens when you leave Sam all alone and bored on a mevieval market.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I Don't Even Want to Go There

**Author's Note:**

> This is where I got the idea from http://inkcaviness.tumblr.com/post/103382438983/its-sunday-morning-and-i-still-dont-have#post-notes

"I don’t get it. What are we supposed to do there?" Sam looked at himself in the mirror, sceptically. Those clothes he was wearing clearly fit perfectly which meant that Charlie had been thinking about this for some time now. Even though he thought that he looked ridiculous.  
  
“We’re going to having fun. Look, I do this all the time. You just forget about your boring, grey life and live as someone else for a day. In a reality that is long gone or never existed. You can be everything and everyone you always wanted to be,” Charlie was sitting on the floor next to Sam, putting on her boots and looked up at one of her best friends for a moment. She had hundreds of clothes but she really needed new boots. The old ones had been too cheap and hardly survived a week of LARPing.  
  
Sam huffed and looked at the the red haired girl. “You mean a reality where there weren’t regular use of soap but a lot of gross diseases. Because the lack of soap. People died from starvation as well. They were probably freezing in winter and science was called witchcraft.”  
“Don’t be like that. Trust me for once! It’s gonna be awesome,” she laughed and stood up, jumping a little.  
  
“Last time I trusted you I was hungover for two days and you woke up with a tattoo,” Sam reminded her but smiled fondly after a second.  
  
Charlie just shrugged. “It was ComicCon after all. I would have been disappointed if it had gone any other way.”  
  
“Why did you even get this thing? It’s damn heavy,” Sam turned back to his reflection and fingered the hem of the silver-shiny chain-mail. It was heavy but a sword-belt held some of the weight so it would probably be okay, even for the whole day. Charlie had picked out a black leather belt and gave him one of her long swords she had brought to the store. It was made of real iron, just not sharpened. Sam didn’t trust Charlie when she said that it was all legal, even sharp. The sword was also kind of beautiful, with gemstones and a nice formed handle.  
  
When Sam had first seen it he had thought that Charlie was joking. It was one of the most beautiful weapons in her possession and Sam didn’t even want to think about what it had cost. But she had just looked at him disapproving until he had taken it.  
  
Charlie stepped closer and looked Sam up and down slowly. “Well, you are right, it doesn’t fit you. You are less of a poor knight and more of a prince or something like that. Wait a second,” she was about to disappear behind shelves again but Sam called her back.  
  
“Charlie! You know I could go in my own clothes, right?” There may have been some hope in his voice.  
  
Charlie seemed to consider it before answering. “After we bought them they are yours,” and then she was gone again.  
  
Sam sighed deeply and looked at himself again. He still looked ridiculous. He put off the belt and laid it to the ground.  
  
Not long after Charlie came back with some clothes in one hand and a pair of boots in the other. She was followed by a tall blonde girl.  
  
“Get on your knees,” Charlie said, dropping the clothes to the floor.  
  
“What?!”  
  
“Get on your knees, kid,” Charlie laughed. “We want to get the mail off of you.”  
  
“I am two years older and 12 inch taller,” he got to his knees anyway. He raised his hands a little and they pulled the mail off together with the red linen tunic which left him in black pants. Sam was pretty sure Charlie did that on purpose. She had tried to get him laid for some time now.  
  
“Okay you weren’t lying,” the blonde girl sounded a little too impressed, talking to Charlie, just staring at Sam’s chest.  
  
“You want me to take off my pants as well, Bradbury?”  
  
“Not me but I’m sure she’d appreciate it.”  
  
The girl blushed hard and turned to go. “I’ll be close by if you need anything.”  
  
“You gotta stop doing that, Charlie,” even though it was actually a little cute that she wanted him happy.  
  
“What’s that?” He nodded at the clothes lying on the ground and pulled one of the things with him while getting up.  
  
It was a black cloak with blood red adornments along the edges. The inside of the cloak was the same red. At the collar it would be held by a silver needle with the same red gemstone as on the sword.  
  
“That is the last piece. This first,” Charlie lifted up a black tunic and gave it to Sam.  
  
He pulled it over his head and looked at him in the mirror once more while Charlie gave the sword belt to him. He fastened it quickly and raised his eyebrows at the mirror.  
  
The tunic was cut open, front and back, up to the belt and the edges had the same adornments as the cloak. The sleeves were simple and went down to his hands where they fit almost tight around his wrists.  
  
Charlie helped him tying the knee high, black boots and fastened the cloak around his neck, as well.  
  
When she was finished she stepped back and nodded. “I like you like this. You should wear this more often. I mean damn, look at you! Clara!”  
  
The blonde girl came back before Charlie fully called her name. “We’ll take these. Will you go and look up what it’ll cost?”  
  
“O-of course. Just a moment,” she ran off before Sam had really noticed that she had been there at all.

 

They had spent about two hours in a car with broken air conditioning and Sam cursed the hot weather. Charlie didn’t feel any different but she was so happy to finally show one of her festivals to Sam that she didn’t really care. The other brother, Dean, was supposed to come with them but he had talked himself out of it. Everyone knew that it really wasn’t more than a poor excuse but she was positive that she would manage to drag him there sooner or later.  
  
“We are not going to do this again,” Sam stated while they were waiting in line to get their tickets to enter the venue.  
  
Charlie looked just the slightest bit offended. “You haven’t even seen anything yet.”  
  
“I am talking about the money. This is way too expensive. And the clothes weren’t cheap either.”  
  
The red haired shrugged. “We are going to make the clothes ourselves then, next time. Now stop bitching and start having fun. It’s not like you do anything else than working except when Dean or I force you to go out with us.”  
  
She took the tickets and pushed Sam forward with one gloved hand. Not that she could have moved him if he wanted to remain standing where he was—but that would have been childish.  
  
So he straightened his back a little further and walked through the huge black gates.  
  
Charlie’s first way was made to a hut where she changed some money. There was a special currency for the festival, even though Sam didn’t see the point in it. It was probably to get the people to buy more stuff and think less about how much money they were spending.  
  
As they were walking to the hut Sam took everything in and tried to remember it so he would know where to go for what - just in case he really wanted something or lost Charlie somewhere.  
  
There were a few tents and huts and one tent that sold bottled alcohol caught his attention. They were sorted by colour and kept in reed baskets on the floor. Sam stopped to look at it more closely. What had drawn his attention was the look of the alcohol, the colours. There were normal yellowish and red bottles but also some with green and blue liquid. The bottles themselves looked great, too. They were round with a long, slender neck and cork closing it.  
  
“It’s mostly mead in there. Somewhere from 11 to 16%. It really warms you up in winter, when you drink it hot but it’s just as great cold,” Charlie explained when Sam picked up one of the red bottles to read the label.  
  
The further they went from the entrance the more realistic it got. There were few people who wore new age clothes and when Sam asked Charlie about it she told him that that would probably change later on. It was early Friday and most of those who were just curious came later, on Saturday or Sunday.  
  
After walking around a little they sat on a bench by a small stage. The music wasn’t exactly what Sam listened to normally but it was okay and Charlie seemed to have a thing for the dancers who didn’t seem to belong to the music group. They were just dancing together in front of the stage. It was fun to watch them since they really seemed to know what they were doing.  
  
“The brunette one is pretty cute,” Sam commented.  
  
“Huh? Yeah, yes she is,” Charlie was quick to answer and grinned. She looked at her for a little longer and back at Sam. “Would you mind if I talk to her?”  
  
“At least let her finish the dance,” Sam laughed. He wasn’t sure what he had expected when he had agreed on going with Charlie but he had kinda known that something like this could happen. His backup plan was to stay for an hour or two more and leave then. He would still keep his promise then—which was to try it and not leave as soon as they arrive.  
  
“I’ll go and have something to eat then,” Sam got up and straightened his tunic, looking down at Charlie. She smiled up at him and nodded. “Try not to get food poisoning.”  
  
“I’m gonna sue someone if I do,” he chuckled and turned to leave.  
  
“Sam, text me when you take the bus to go home, okay?”  
  
“There is a bus?” Sam turned back around to look at his friend questioning.  
  
Charlie nodded. “It goes once an hour and should get you somewhere where you can take another bus or call Dean or something.”  
  
Sam smiled a little. “Of course I will tell you then. Now go and have fun. That’s why you are here after all.”  
  
“Sam?” She called him back again. Before he could say something she spoke again. “That’s why _we_ are here. At least try it, okay?”  
  
He gave her a warm half smile. “Okay, Charlie. I’ll try.”  
  
The place was fairly big so he had free choice where he wanted to eat. He walked around without any further plan and finally decided for a tent that was filled with smoke from the fire inside. In the shadow painted by the tent stood some benches and tables made of massive wood. They looked worn but definitely not as if they were going to give out under Sam’s weight. They would carry more than twice his weight.  
  
He went to the man working on the grill and smiled. He looked the small man up and down, as far as he could see him-his hair was brownish gold and his eyes were cheerful with something very friendly and attentive in them but he also looked like someone who would take the first opportunity to make a fool out of someone. He wore a dark green lace-up tunic with black belt and silver buckle and dark pants.  
  
“Hey,” Sam said and looked at the menu which was written in huge white letters on black painted pieces of wood above the fire.  
  
“Greetings,” came the answer and Sam smiled a little when he looked back down at the now sparkling eyes. A spark of something Sam couldn’t have named even if he had tried.  
  
“What can I get you?” The man with the bright eyes put a fork aside which he had used to turn a steak around that lay on the grill that stood on the right side of the open tent. On the left side there was a huge pan and just a little further to the left there stood the benches with the tables.  
  
Sam shrugged. “I don’t know. What do _you_ think is best?”  
  
“Try the mushrooms with bread. We make all of it ourselves. Even the bread,” he pointed at the huge pan behind him where mushrooms and a lot of other things were being made.  
  
Sam nodded slowly and looked back up at the wooden sign. “What kind of mead is it?” He didn’t know a lot about it, but Charlie told him a little about it when they stood at the hut with the colourful alcohol and he could just pretend to know something about it. He would take some anyway.  
  
“We have some common mead which is basically honey and water. We also have cherry melomel if you like that better and you can have it either cold or hot,” he chuckled. “But I think cold will do fine for you.”  
  
“Why?”  
  
“You don’t need mead to be hot.”  
  
Sam was a little speechless by the plainness of this compliment if you want to call it that. He swallowed and laughed but knew himself how it barely covered his surprise. “Yeah, thank you,” he said. “I think…” Sam added a little more silent.  
  
“So..?” He drawled, tilting his head to the side.  
  
“So, what?” Sam asked still trying to get over his little shock.  
  
“What do you want to eat?” His voice sounded patient and just the tiniest bit amused.  
  
“Oh, right. I’ll have the mushrooms and the cherry mead. Cold. The mead, not the mushrooms,” he offered a small smile to make up for his awkwardness.  
  
“Great.”  
  
Sam watched the brunette throwing around a plate and a cup, both seemed to be handiwork as well as most things around, preparing Sam’s order. He placed everything in front of Sam and looked up at him. That would be eight gold or the same amount of new-world money.”  
  
“That’s actually pretty cheap,” Sam mentioned. He would have thought that they took way more.  
  
He opened the small buckle of the black leather bag that was fastened on his belt and took out two of the bigger coins which was as mush as $5 each and handed them over.  
  
“My name is Gabriel by the way,” the smaller man said while taking the money and fishing for the change in a brown linen bag lying somewhere behind the pan.  
  
“Keep it,” Sam said when he was offered the two gold coins and lifted up his cup in one hand and the plate and the small loaf of bread in the other. “Thank you, Gabriel.” He looked at his hands for a second. “For the food, I mean.”  
  
“Of course,” a grin appeared on his lips.  
  
He turned around and walked over to the tables, sitting down in the shadow. Just as he sat down he noticed that he was lacking a spoon and knife.  
  
“Did you do that on purpose?” Sam called in Gabriel’s main direction.  
  
“You didn’t tell me your name,” was the response he got.  
  
Sam raised an eyebrow. “What, your customers don’t get a spoon unless they tell you their name?”  
  
“Not all of them. Just the cute ones.”  
  
“That’s not very professional,” Sam mentioned, turning to look at Gabriel. He couldn’t be annoyed for real though. The look in Gabriel’s eyes just wouldn’t let him be angry. Maybe it wasn’t just his eyes but Gabriel’s face.  
  
“Well, this is somewhere between the sixth and fifteenth century, I don’t have to be professional. I don’t have to be anything,” he grabbed a knife and a spoon and stood in front of Sam, on eye level now where Sam was sitting down. He held his hands behind his back and waited, still grinning.  
  
“It’s easy to get them. It’s one word. A beautiful one, I’m sure.”  
  
Sam sighed and shook his head, looking down to hide the small laugh. When he looked back up he had both his eyebrows raised. “What would you get out of learning my name?”  
  
“A title to the face,” Gabriel answered instantly. “As you already got one to mine.”  
  
“Yeah, but I didn’t ask for it,” Sam pointed out.  
  
“But you wanted to know it anyway.”  
  
“Did I?” Sam asked.  
  
“Yes,” Gabriel said with as much confidence as ever. He tilted his head to the side. “So?”  
  
“Sam, okay? Can I have my spoon now? My mushrooms are probably cold by now.”  
  
“Sam…” He smiled. “Yeah, it really is a nice name. Here you have and-” he paused for a second. “Don’t worry. The air is probably warmer than the mushrooms have ever been.”  
  
Which was true, Sam had to admit. He took the silver items from Gabriel’s hand and turned back around to start eating.  
  
Gabriel went back to taking and preparing orders but most of the people took their food or mead with them rather than sitting down. Sam noticed that everyone had to pay a little more for the plates and cups. Money which they would get back when they returned the stuff to one of the tents or huts where food was sold. He wondered why he didn’t have to pay it. At first he thought the reason was that he sat down but as soon as a couple sat down with their food and still paid a little extra he knew that this theory was wrong.  
  
The whole time he was watching Gabriel attentively but as unobtrusively as possible. He still got caught now and then, meeting Gabriel’s eyes, blushing the first few times and looking down at his plate quickly.  
  
Gabriel in return, stared openly and shamelessly at Sam, grinning when he caught the taller man looking back at him.  
  
Sam finished the last bite of bread and rose to give both plate and cup back.  
  
“Would you get me some more mead?” He asked and smiled brightly but a little shyly.  
  
Gabriel turned around, a jauntily look in his eyes, and took the cup from Sam’s hand. “Put the plate to the others, would you?” He pointed at the dirty plates while pouring another cup of mead.  
  
Sam did as he was told and was about to fumble with the buckle of his bag again when Gabriel placed the drink in front of him and stopped the younger man. “It’s on me.”  
  
“Thank you but you don’t have to-”  
  
“But I want to,” interrupted Gabriel quickly.  
  
Sam considered turning it down for a second but hey, free alcohol from a guy who thought he was cute and didn’t look so bad himself. “Okay. Thank you,” Sam smiled genuinely and took the cup. He was surprised to find it hot this time.  
  
“Sam?” Gabriel called him back when he was about to sit down again. His voice sounded strange, small, almost careful. Like a different person.  
  
“Yes?” Sam smiled encouraging because he knew how it felt to do something that was challenging in any way.  
  
“I am free to go in half an hour. Would you maybe like to watch the tourney? It’s a sword fight on the showground and archery afterwards,” he was holding Sam’s glance but his hands seemed a little unsteady washing the plates. Sam could be wrong though.  
  
He again considered turning the offer down but then again, he had paid a lot of money for the clothes and for the ticket, too, so he could make the best of it now. He had also promised Charlie to try to have fun and he would be in company that seemed pleasant enough.  
  
So he nodded and took a sip before answering. “Sure, that would be nice I think. I’ll be back here by then.”  
  
Gabriel already wanted to ask if Sam didn’t want the mead anymore but the taller man emptied the cup in two huge gulps and sat it down in front of Gabriel.  
  
“That stuff got 16%!” he exclaimed but Sam just shrugged before turning around and walked off to look for a bathroom.  
  
Gabriel was left chuckling, cleaning the dishes and serving a customer now and then. One of the main acts was on the big stage and most of the visitors were watching. Gabriel was glad that his cousin Anna would be stuck at the tent when the show was over and everybody screamed for food and alcohol.

 

Sam had tried to look for Charlie but the venue had started to fill up and it seemed impossible to find anyone. So he sent his time looking at jewellery and leather work. They also sold clothes and he was convinced that they were all hand sewn.  
  
He almost bought a pair of leather gloves but, hell, when was he supposed to wear them? So he didn’t.

  
Gabriel was pretty sure that the clock was lying to him. There was no way that 30 minutes were such a long time.  
  
He was more than thankful for his ability to be confident and maybe even cocky, as people liked to call it, around someone he liked. The problem was that when he was alone again he started thinking about it and it made him nervous. Not always, but too often for his liking. He would deny it whenever someone asked him about it though.  
  
“Ready?” Sam asked and leaned against one of the posts holding up the white tent.  
  
Gabriel turned around quickly, tossed the cloth he was holding for drying the dishes to a red haired girl, whose name was Anna, as Sam was told later, and flashed a grin that ignited something cheerful in his eyes and made Sam smile himself.  
  
“Of course,” he walked quickly around the grill to step next to Sam and lead the way.  
  
Sam noticed the faint smell of grass and hay under the thick smell of smoke that was brought to Gabriel’s clothes and hair by the fire in the tent, but Sam didn’t mind it. It didn’t smell _dirty_ and he was fairly sure that even though the man with the whisky-eyes lives on a place that imitated the medieval age he showered often enough. Or that was what his hair looked like at least.  
  
“You know, you could take part in the tourney, kiddo,” Gabriel informed, looking Sam up and down, taking in the sight, again making no effort to hide it.  
  
Sam laughed, managing not to flinch under the others glance. “Well, today was the first day that I even held a real sword. And mine is neither sharp nor really mine.”  
  
“So is it your first medieval fair then, I guess?” Gabriel asked, curios.  
  
“Yeah, pretty lame, huh?” Sam glanced over to the smaller man who seemed to vibrate with energy and anticipation. It was great, being with someone like Gabriel after such a long time. Or maybe it would have been nice with anyone. Sam couldn’t say for sure but he couldn’t remember when he had last felt this upbeat about spending time with someone. And that after just a few words and a drink.  
  
Gabriel chuckled. “Well, let me explain something to you.” He paused for a second to look at Sam serious. “Out there in the real world we are the lame ones. We spend our time dressing up and acting. Most of us aren’t even good at it. Some do it because it’s some kind of passion, a hobby, something besides their real life.”  
  
“And the others?” Sam asked and stopped for a moment to let two women and a kid pass.  
  
“The others are born into it. This whole thing is like a circus, just bigger and … different. The whole market is moving around the states,” a small smile appeared on Gabriel’s face.  
  
“Really? Charlie didn’t mention that. So, what kind are you?”  
  
Gabriel hesitated for as long as a heartbeat lasts. “Family business.”  
  
“Oh wow. So it’s ‘ordinary people’ and your family? That’s got to be a huge family.”  
  
They reached the showground and sat down on dark wooden benches. They didn’t look as heavy as the ones where Gabriel had worked but still impressive. They took places in the second row but at the end of the bench since Gabriel wouldn’t be able to see anything further in the back and no one behind Sam would be able to catch a glimpse at the showground.  
  
“It’s not just _my_ family,” he paused and tucked on his belt to get the brown leather bag, similar to Sam’s, out of the way. “There are two of us. But both are quite big. But it’s nice. As a kid you always have someone to play with and when you get older you either stay and keep the family tradition upright or you leave and find work, love, peace or whatever somewhere else,” he shrugged and looked up at Sam. He really needed to see what Sam thought about it.  
  
“Wast the school thing difficult?” Sam really wanted to know. He wasn’t sure if he asked too much but as long as Gabriel didn’t seem bothered by it…  
  
It wasn’t exactly what Gabriel had expected but better than than many reactions he could have imagined. “Most of us are taught at home until middle school, then we visit a boarding school until we are 18 or graduate high school. I don’t know, it works for most of us.”  
  
“That sounds like a reasonable way to deal with it. If you can afford it.” Boarding schools weren’t cheap after all.  
  
The benches started to be quite crowded and Sam guessed that it couldn’t be long until the tourney began.  
  
“Is there a plan? I mean, is it always the same person fighting?” Sam had watched the people who sat down all around them and those who were sitting in tents and around fireplaces on the lawn. It seemed to be the camp where all the people who worked there lived. They all seemed busy and bored at the same time.  
  
Gabriel nodded. “Kinda. When the families fight it’s just show, they know exactly how the other fights. I mean no one gets hurt, not really. But when a visitor fights the rival is chosen just minutes before the fight. One like you wouldn’t fight against my eldest brother, who is a really good swordsman.”  
  
“Do you know how to fight?” Sam suddenly wanted to know and looked at Gabriel’s hands, trying to figure out if those tiny hands could manage to handle a sword the right way.  
  
A clear laughed sounded in Sam’s direction. “He is one of the best.”  
  
Sam turned around to find himself face to face with a girl who had pushed through the people standing at the side of the benches. “Oh really? You didn’t tell me about that,” was all he knew to answer but he was ignored.  
  
“That’s Jo, a niece of mine. Jo what do you want?” Gabriel smiled fondly.  
  
“Dad wants to know if you could take care of Anima and Hera after the show,” Jo asked.  
  
“Sure. What is Michael doing that he can’t do it himself?”  
  
“I don’t know. I think he is teaching the kids in archery because Raphael is helping auntie Eve because Naomi needs to help Chuck. Ruby isn’t feeling so well or something and so she can’t be at the stage which is the reason that Tessa is there and not with Chuck which leaves Anima and Hera without anyone,” she was talking so fast that the words blurred into each other and all Sam heard was a lot of names.  
  
Gabriel seemed to have no problem to follow, though. “Okay. I’ll be there.”  
  
“Thanks!” And then she was gone as quickly as she had appeared.  
  
“Those were a lot of names,” Sam laughed when he looked back at Gabriel. “Who are Anima and Hera?”  
  
“The horses who are ridden for the show today. And well, you get used to the names. It’s mostly family after all.”  
  
“Why do you have to do that when there are so many people sitting around by the tents?”  
  
“Some of them are visitors who are staying for the weekend and even we get to have free time. We have some assigned tasks to do but most of the time it goes like this and everyone helps where help is needed.”  
  
“That sounds actually better than a ‘common’ job,” Sam smiled and watched curiously when music started to play on the showground.  
  
“Well you could always marry into the family…” Gabriel’s voice was so silent that Sam almost didn’t hear it and he chose to ignore it. It didn’t mean anything. They didn’t know each other and that was stuff that people just said like that. It meant nothing.  
  
Two men entered the showground and walked around a little, showing off. One of them wore light blue that almost looked white, the other was clothed in dark red.  
  
“Who are they?” Sam wanted to know leaning over to his personal guide a little.  
  
Gabriel answered without looking at Sam. “The one in blue is my brother Michael and the man in red is Benny. He actually doesn’t work here but he is part of the other family here. He has a bar and an own family now, that’s pretty impressive, if you’d ask me.”  
  
“Do you have any brothers who left the family business?”  
  
The two men had started pacing around each other and Sam watched with interests even though he had just as much attention for his conversation with Gabriel.  
  
“Two. Balthazar and Castiel,” Gabriel answered instantly.  
  
Sam huffed a laugh.  
  
“What is it?” Gabriel wanted to know.  
  
“My brother is with a guy called Castiel. Doesn’t seem like such a common name to me.”  
  
“What’s you brother’s name, Sam?”  
  
Sam looked down at Gabriel. “Dean.”  
  
“So the good looks seem to be a family thing then. I mean I always just saw pictures but it’s obvious,” Gabriel’s grin could almost be counted as as a leer.  
  
Sam blushed and turned away as if he was just watching the fight. When Gabriel couldn’t see it it didn’t happen. Why was he flirting so openly?! But Sam had to admit that he really enjoyed it at the same time. It was nothing but flattering after all.  
  
The two men weren’t pacing each other anymore. Steel was clashing with steel and the whole scene looked so real that it almost seemed dangerous. None of them carried a shield but they didn’t seem to need one.  
  
The dance came to an end when Benny tried to attack Michael from the left but Michael stopped it with his own sword, throwing Benny back and hitting him with the handle, hard enough to bring him to the ground.  
  
“Didn’t you say no one would get hurt?” Sam asked and tried to figure out if the man lying in the sand was hurt badly.  
  
“I said ‘not really’. He’s acting, Michael didn’t hit him really hard. Nothing worth more than a bruise,” Gabriel was more interested in who was going to fight next then what was happening between the men standing next to each other again.  
  
There was another fight with Michael and a guy whose name Sam had already forgotten and afterwards different men in blue and red fought against visitors. Some of them were actually pretty good fighters.  
  
When the sword fights were over the archery began. It began with the family clans again but just once, visitors were allowed afterwards.  
  
Sam was pleasantly surprised that women were shooting as well and had to laugh when he saw someone familiar.  
  
“Do you see the red haired woman over there around often?” He couldn’t help but ask.  
  
“I think I did saw her some time back. But I could be wrong, we have a lot for visitors after all.”  
  
“That’s Charlie. She brought me here and left me all on my own to flirt with someone girl,” Sam said, smiling.  
  
“She is good,” Gabriel said after watching her a little while.  
  
She was. Sam knew a bit about shooting, not archery but you hit a target the same way as shooting with a gun. And even if he didn’t shoot he would still now that the closer the arrow hit to the middle the better.  
  
Sam didn’t know that Charlie knew how to shoot with a bow but it was just another small thing that fit perfectly in the picture of Charlie Bradbury.  
  
When she was finished she walked on the way in front of Sam and Gabriel and when she noticed the way Gabriel was looking over at Sam now and then she winked at Sam, grinning with a look that said something like ‘Well done, Winchester.’ And Sam could almost hear her say it.

  
  
The horses turned out to be two really beautiful mares, Anima white and Hera black. After some short introductions Sam helped drying them and Gabriel showed him every step so that each of them took care of one horse.  
  
Gabriel walked around Hera, looking at Sam stroking her neck. She nudged at his side, pushing him a little, almost making him stumble. But just almost.  
  
“She likes you. Here, try this,” Gabriel handed him an apple and remained standing so close to Sam that their arms touched.  
  
“For you, lady,” Sam smiled and leaned a bit closer to Gabriel when Hera’s velvet lips took the apple carefully.  
  
“Lady?” Gabriel shot a quizzing glance at Sam.  
  
“Lady or mistress. Or goddess if you like. It’s the right translation for Hera,” Sam answered, looking at Anima. “And her name means-“  
  
“Spirit, I know. We chose the names together,” Gabriel tucked at Sam’s sleeve. “Come on, we bring them home. Do you want to do anything special afterwards?”  
  
Sam took Hera and Gabriel tugged Anima behind him, walking towards the fenced part of the field where the tents with the fireplaces stood. They had to stop now and then because kids wanted to cuddle the horses, as far as a kid can cuddle a full grown horse.  
  
“I don’t really know what there is to do here,” the taller man admitted when he closed the gate, wrapping the leather strap around the wood to lock it in place.  
  
“Well, we have a lot, actually. Cooking, baking, making music, dancing, drinking. It never gets boring. We have also a blacksmith. Or you could learn how to shoot,” it was a long list but Gabriel just pointed out some of them.  
  
“Could you…” Sam’s voice stopped working and he cringed internally. That was so not going the way he wanted it to go.  
  
“Yes, kiddo?” He just pretend et that he didn’t notice the way Sam’s voice broke.  
  
“Your niece said you were one of the best swordsmen in your family,” he stated. It was a good beginning, he thought.  
  
“Right,” he drawled slowly, making it sound like a question, looking up expectantly.  
  
“Would you mind showing me some things?”  
  
“You want to learn how to fight?” If Sam ha had to describe the look in Gabriel’s eyes he would have said the butterscotch eyes seemed to show off how thrilled he was.  
  
“I know how to _fight_. Just not how to fight with a _sword_ ,” Sam corrected the smaller man, trying to smile and succeeding. Kind of.  
  
Gabriel looked Sam up and down again. “Would have been strange if you didn’t know how to defend yourself with that body.”  
  
“Uh oh well… I think so?”  
  
“Okay then kiddo. Shall we find you someone your size or do you want me to bring you down?”  
  
“I’m afraid you’ll do as good as anyone else,” Sam admitted.

 

Gabriel seemed to enjoy himself a lot while trying to find a sword that fits Sam. They had agreed that Charlie’s sword deserved better than a fight, especially with someone like Sam doing the fighting.  
  
“It really looks great but that’s all it has. It’s too light and you don’t get the right balance with it. Even sharp it wouldn’t have done you anything good in a fight. She probably just gave it to you to make it look like you weren’t a total newbie here.” Gabriel had explained to Sam while going from tent to tent to ask countless family members if they had a spare sword for Sam.  
  
All of them gave Sam a long look and some of them gave a comment on how Gabriel did a good job in the finding himself ‘that one’. Gabriel always had a sarcastic answer and a grin for them and once or twice Sam saw someone winking at him.  
  
It took four tents until they finally found someone who thought they could maybe have a suitable long sword somewhere. Gabriel followed him around and told Sam to stay in the shadow of the open tent with a woman called Ellen. She apparently was Jo’s mother and she seemed like a nice person to talk to.  
  
“He is one of the better ones of the family,” she told Sam.  
  
“We met about two hours ago,” Sam mumbled. Everyone seemed to think there was something going on between them!  
  
“But he already spends his free time with you. Did you know that he thinks the tourney is one of the most boring things going on?”  
  
“He suggested going.” Honestly? Sam was a little confused now.  
  
Ellen laughed a little. “Because he wanted to impress you, probably. Did it work?”  
  
Sam wasn’t sure what to answer. “I guess so? Does he do that a lot?”  
  
“No. Well, he flirts with almost everyone but that’s it. He usually does it for the tips. Like most of us.”  
  
“Should I feel flattered then?” Sam laughed to cover his uncertainty.  
  
Ellen shrugged. “Just think about giving him a chance. You seem like a good guy for him.”  
  
Sam had time to nod shortly before Gabriel reappeared with a sword on his belt, another in his hand and a great smile on his lips. “Ready?”

 


	2. That's a Lot At Once

He felt fucking ridiculous. And he was pretty sure that was exactly what he looked like. He moved clumsy, his limbs far too big, and he was thrown off balance more than once.  


Gabriel moved natural, with finesse as if his sword was a part of his body.  


In fact that was what the smaller man had told him more than once. “The steel is just another part of your arm.”  


“No, it’s not,” Sam pointed out matter-of-factly and Gabriel laughed a small laugh. A small but genuine chuckle which Sam loved already - even though he wouldn’t admit it. Not even to himself. Well okay maybe he could admit it to himself.  


“This was an awful idea,” Sam lowered his sword and let the the tip drag over the grass.  


Gabriel stepped closer and nudged his sword against the one he got for Sam. “What are you talking about? This is fun!”  


“I look ludicrous,” Sam sighed. He knew he was being childish but he couldn’t help it. He was making more of a fool of himself than he intended to. He suppressed another sigh and looked down at Gabriel instead, smiling to look less bothered about it.  


“You are cute when you don’t know what to do with yourself,” Gabriel commented and cocked his head to a side. “Come on kiddo, there is no one around to see you. We’ll make a great knight out of you.”  


Gabriel had lead the way to a place that lay even behind the camp ground. The tents hid them pretty well and there were sheets and parts of fabric that looked like pieces of animal fur and skin between the tents so that not even Gabriel’s family was able to see them. On the other side of the lawn were some trees, a small brook and more grassy plains. Surely no one would watch them from there.  


And if anyone tried, well, he was practically fucked. As he voiced this Gabriel laughed at him again. "You wish you were."  


Sam didn't have time to respond or even think of a fitting response after the meaning of those four words had set into his mind, Gabriel was quick in nudging his sword again to motivate it to hold it back up.  


"I'll show you again. We'll get you there."  


Sam wasn't convinced about that but he was determined to convince himself that it would probably be fun anyway. "Okay. Explain it to me again?"  


"What exactly?" Gabriel asked and swung his blade around as if it weighted nothing. The swords weren’t unbearable heavy, but they weren’t made of cardboard either. He was way stronger than Sam had given him credit for at the beginning.  


Sam shrugged helplessly. "Uh…everything?"  


Gabriel smiled and shook his head. “Relax, breath evenly. Trust me it's important,” he began and stepped back a little.  


“We aren't fighting yet! I need to figure out the basics first, right? So why should my breathing be important to this in any way, yet?”  


“Better you keep it in mind right from the beginning than having to relearn breathing after knowing the other techniques. Move your feet at least a shoulder width apart. Never bring your feet together too close or you will be thrown off balance without your adversary even trying. Watch your adversary and try to find a pattern in their movements, you are lucky if they have any,” while talking Gabriel swung his sword around one-handed and walked in circles, Sam directly in the centre of it.  


“You say that as if it's easy,” Sam muttered but tried hard to remember everything Gabriel taught him. He squared his stance and stepped his feet further apart.  


“You will see that it's nothing you need to consciously do after a few times. Now, for a tall person like you, what do you think are the most common mistakes?” he asked and stopped in front of Sam again, setting his sword onto the ground with the tip.  


“How am I supposed to know?” Sam asked.  


Gabriel clicked his tongue disapproving. “You aren't even trying.”  


“I am!” Sam assured.  


“So..?” The shorter man knew exactly that Sam could figure it out. He was smart as that.  


Sam thought about it for a second, really thought about it. “I don't know. Legs maybe?” It was worth a try, right?  


“What do you mean, 'legs'?” Gabriel asked and leaned forward onto the handle of his sword.  


Sam gave it another thought and shrugged. “Well, with arms as long as mine I would probably tend to forget that my legs are long as well and wouldn't pay attention to them which would make it awfully easy for you to attack them. I think.”  


A grin crept onto Gabriel's lips. “So, you are saying you are proportional? Long hair, long arms, long legs, long-”  


“Oh my God Gabriel! Don't!” Sam protested and looked at his teacher-for-the-moment, annoyed. “You are awful.”  


“You love it,” he laughed. “But you are right, you need to remember to pay attention to every part of your body.”  


“Gabriel?"  


“Yes?”  


“Is it more important to try and attack actively or stepping aside or something?” Sam wanted to know. He really started to like the idea of having some skills like, well, sword-fighting. He would probably never need it for anything but still. Maybe a zombie apocalypse would come, after all  — that's what Charlie liked to think – and Sam supposed being able to handle a sword could do him some good then.  


“Well that depends. When you fight someone who knows what they are doing, dodging is probably the best way to go. Defending yourself is always important, no matter how good of a fighter you are, but if you are inexperienced you don't want to take any risks and run into the other's blade.”  


That made sense, Sam thought. It was better to exhaust your opponent and hope you'll have a chance then than acting actively without even knowing anything and practically killing yourself. Not that the show fights really killed anyone. But the point was the same. “Will you show me now?” he asked, smiling.  


“Sure. Raise the sword like this, with both hands,” Gabriel instructed and swung up his own sword. He held it secure so that it pointed upwards from a little lower than his torso up to his head. Sam mirrored those actions and looked at Gabriel expectantly.  


“This is a basic position which is great for parrying strikes but also for attacking. Tip the sword, pointing here,” he raised one hand to point at his own neck. “Keep your elbows bent a little and close to your body as often and long as possible, but the sword away from your body.”  


Sam tried to follow the instructions and got rewarded with a bright smile.  


“Good. Remember to not stretch your arms too far. It will cause your thrusts and more importantly your parrying moves to be weak and ineffective. Instead trust your sword to do the length-part,” he instructed clearly.  


“You watched Michael. Did you notice anything in his way of attacking? You can set the sword down for now.”  


Sam was happy to set the blade down — it became really heavy after some time. “That he is damn fast?”  


“He is. He practices since he was a kid after all. No, I mean the time he takes for attacking and the time he uses for his defence.”  


“Uh, well...” Sam began and tried to remember what he saw earlier that day. “He seemed cautious even though he was sure about himself. I think?”  


“Yes,” Gabriel confirmed. “Tell you what. Sword fights used to be shorter than maybe thirty seconds. First blow either killed you or your opponent. We are acting, as I told you before, so we try to drag it out a bit. So when you fight remember that after a not deadly hit you made your adversary is going to try their luck. You need to be prepared to attack and parry right after.”  


“Okay. Another question. What is the right distance to stay away?”  


“That depends on your height, style and sword. If it is the same length as your opponent's one step should be enough to get into their space and you adjust the distance to your sword. Try to get in control of the fight and keep it as simple as possible. For a show you need to look great but if you just try to win fuck what you look like.”  


Sam was almost positive that he could do all of that. It seemed simple enough. “Secure stance, watching out for every part of my body, trying to dodge and being prepared to parry after an attack. Did I forget anything?”  


“Well that's about everything I told you,” Gabriel confirmed. “Want to try it now?”  


“Not really,” Sam laughed. “Don't hurt me, okay?”  


“Stay calm and controlled and try to look as if you know what you are doing,” he advised and raised his sword. Sam did the same and took a deep breath. Gabriel smiled reassuring. “We will go slow. First, parrying and dodging.”

 

The same way he had told the taller man before he swung the sword forward. It was an accurate and hard hit and Sam did his best to parry it. He stepped backwards to regain his balance but the next strike followed immediately and the third threw Sam to the ground. “What did I tell you about a secure stance?” Gabriel laughed.  


“Well it's not that easy!” Sam tried to defend himself and got back onto his feet.  


Gabriel grinned smugly. “I know. Small tip. When you have the choice, dodging is better than parrying. You don't want to waste energy so keep your moves simple. You can simply step aside and open up the opportunity to strike the other while they try to recover from their own attack. And Sam, hit the person, not the sword.”  


Sam sighed. “That's really a lot to remember at once.”  


“That's not even half of it,” Gabriel laughed.  


“What's the easiest way to have an advantage over the other?” Asking wouldn't hurt. Not that Sam would be able to actually do it.  


Gabriel shrugged. “Turn your back to the sun to blind them. No, it's not unfair, it's useful. Okay, again.”  


This time Sam was prepared for the force behind the blow when steel collided with steel. He stepped aside more than once but was thrown down eventually.  


“You always dodge in the same direction. There is so much space! Use it, try to make it unpredictable where you are going to step.”  


“I'll try,” he assured. Then Sam remembered something. “Hey, you said it's better to attack and take time to parry then, right? Michael sometimes attacked so much that there wasn't even a reason for him to dodge or parry.”

 

“Well yes. When you are sure about the basics you can start combining attacks. In the historic German style of fighting you were keeping your opponent on the defensive to keep them from attacking and that technique works well for Michael,” he explained and shrugged it of. “Do you want to try attacking next?”  


“I can try?” Sam was even less sure about that than about just dodging.  


“Keep both hands on the sword, try to hit my body not my sword and go,” Sam knew it was supposed to be encouraging but he still wasn't so sure.  


Sam tried to copy what Gabriel had done and followed the line his sword wanted to go, taking all the force out of his wrists and using the sword as some kind of lever to force it down hardly. Gabriel parried the hit quickly but with a “good” that made Sam feel a little tingly inside. What the fuck? Where did that feeling come from? It was probably just the positive feeling of doing something the right way, he thought.  


The next hit was just as hard but hurt like hell. Sam dropped the sword and concentrated on the pain in his forearm.  


Gabriel was on his side instantly and pushed the clothes out of the way to take a look at Sam's arm. “This can easily break some bones, but you are fine,” he explained then.  


“What?” Sam looked down at him in disbelieve.  


“You crossed your arms and the force of the moving sword is enough to seriously hurt you. It once broke the forearm of a nephew of mine. But you are fine.”  


“You could have told me about that earlier,” Sam said accusing and pulled his sleeve back down.  


“Sorry,” Gabriel looked really sorry. Which surprised Sam a little but also made him feel guilty. He didn't want Gabriel to feel bad.  


“It's okay,” he was quick to say. “Just tell me now what else I have to know and we can go on,” he offered smiling.  


Gabriel's face lit up again and he smiled back. He gave a round glass bottle to Sam, that had lain with their coats and thought about it while Sam was drinking. “Well, never turn your back to your opponent. And don't underestimate someone because of their physical appearance. Don't hyper-focus on the place you want to hit because the other could always figure it out. At the same time try to figure out where the other wants to hit you by reading their eyes and body language.”  


“That's a lot.”  


“You asked for it.”  


“True. Okay fine. Will you show me how to combine attack and defence?” Sam asked and put the bottle back down.  


Gabriel tilted his head. “What makes you think that that is important?”  


“Michael did it,” Sam shrugged and grinned. If there was one thing he could do it was watching people and taking in details.  


Gabriel laughed and shook his head. “I doubt we will come far enough for that. I mean I can show you but you won't learn everything at once. We are doing month’s worth of lessons at once already.”  


“Well then we should stop talking and start practising, right?” Sam had no clue where this eagerness came from but he was a little proud of it. He would do this and he would show Gabriel what he was capable of when he wanted to.

 

When Sam started breathing hard and Gabriel was clearly affected by the heat and the physical effort he put into every movement as well, they decided to have take break. Sam sat down next to his cloak but Gabriel nudged him with a foot to get back up. “Let’s get out of the sun.”  


So Sam got back up and followed, walking next to the blond, over to the tents. As soon as he sat back down and Gabriel disappeared to get them something cold to drink Sam decided that checking his phone wouldn’t hurt.  


He had a message from Charlie, asking where he was. It wasn’t older than ten minutes and Sam decided that it had time until Gabriel returned.  


While waiting he took a look around the tent. It was made of heavy but brightly coloured fabric, which was carried by massive wood posts. The door-bit was open but it was almost cool inside—which Sam was grateful for.  


There was a bed that looked handmade, just like the wooden dresser and huge chest that looked like one of those women used to get when they got married. There was also something made of dark wood of which Sam could only guess what it was for. He had seen something like it in other tents before.  


"No swords?" he asked, pointing at the wooden frame, when Gabriel finally returned and gave a bottle of water to him, opening one himself and taking a sip before setting his sword down in said frame.  


He joined Sam on the floor afterwards. “Well I do have quite a lot of them, but most of them are set up outside for show. Two of Raphael’s broke a few days back so he borrowed two of mine. And I gave one to our blacksmith because one of the gemstones would have fallen off if I had used it again.”  


"Are yours always set up outside?" Sam wanted to know. Because what was the point in owning them when he couldn’t even use them as he wanted?  


He shook his head. “Nah, usually those outside are for sale, but we sold too many, I suppose. But to get the feeling of a medieval camp swords should be all around, right? Always close by in case that something should attack the camp.” He laughed a little about it himself.  


"Yeah I think so," Sam agreed and took a swing from the water bottle. "Charlie messaged me. She wants to know where I am."  


"Tell her to come to the bright part of the camp and ask for Gabriel’s tent. That should bring her right here," he smiled and started opening his boots to re-lace them back up, but tighter.  


"Easy as that?" Sam asked a little in disbelief while typing out the answer. He did have noticed that the tents matched the colours of the fighters earlier. So it really seemed to be some family thing.  


Gabriel shrugged. “Why make it complicated when it can be easy? Last names aren’t even an option, I mean, half of the people here share the same one. Tell her to bring something to eat, would you?”  


Sam laughed but added it to the message before sending it. “Yeah okay maybe you have a point.” His phone buzzed in his hand. “She asks what we want,” he informed.  


"Something edible I don’t care I like all of it."  


Sam understood that. He had only tried one dish but he was positive that it was completely self-made and that the other things would probably be, too. You just had to like it. Food. he typed eventually.  


"What do youdothe whole day? I mean we spent what? three hours fighting? Don’t you have to be somewhere?" Sam wanted to know. Don’t get him wrong, he loved the fighting, but it seemed to him that there couldn’t be so much to be done then.  


"I told them to get me when they needed someone but Ellen probably made them look for someone else. She is more of a mother than the woman who gave birth to me. Which is strange since she is my brother’s wife but hey…"  


"But that’s nice, isn’t it?" He didn’t really expect an answer to that. "So you don’t have such a good relationship with your mother? That’s strange, well, you live with so many of your relatives after all," Sam’s voice was small and careful as if he was hoping that Gabriel didn’t hear him. "I mean you don’t have to tell me, we met like half a day ago. I shouldn’t even have asked."  


"It’s fine, don’t worry," he didn’t intend on answering though. His own phone buzzed in the leather bag, where he kept his money as well, and he checked it quickly just to scowl at the screen. "I gotta help one of the witches…"  


"The witches?" Sam asked, curious.  


"Eve, Pamela and Naomi. They are the clan's witches. Actually they just sell stones and runes and herbs—maybe you’ve seen one of those huts. Since Naomi has to help Chuck we take turns looking for her stuff and it seems like now my time has come," Gabriel had to admit he was a little disappointed. The time with Sam had been the best he had had since … he didn’t even remember when the last time had been.  


Sam nodded along. “Are they like, gifted? For real, I mean? Or is it just a title for the visitors so that-” he couldn’t finish his sentence because of Charlie standing in front of them and sitting down causually as if she owned the place.  


"I was looking for you," she informed Sam, smiling. She was balancing two plates, one for each man.  


Sam looked a little guilty, probably more than he felt. Even though he felt pretty bad. “You can have some of mine. Sorry I didn’t think about you just having two hands.”  


"Don’t worry, I’m great," she assured.  


Sam couldn’t help but smile. “Did you get her phone number or something?”  


“‘Course I did.”  


"Whose number?" Gabriel wanted to know. He had gotten up to get a fork and a knife for each of them and handed some coins to Charlie while sitting back down.  


"Her name is Tessa. She has to help out somewhere and I am waiting for her to find a way to get out of there," she explained, still smiling.  


Gabriel gave her an accusing look. “You are the reason I need to work then. Thanks a lot.” It was obvious that he wasn’t actually angry; a little annoyed maybe.  


"You already had some time together. Quit whining. Just take Sam with you and tie him up somewhere in the back, then he won’t run away. What did you do the whole time, anyway?" Charlie was putting away the money quickly to look at Sam.  


He laughed. “Most of the time I got hit.”  


"You are quick to get kinky! You know each other how long? Five hours? Six?"  


Gabriel couldn’t help the grin appearing on his lips. He already liked her. “You are the one who suggested tying him up just now.”  


"He was trying to teach me how to handle a sword! That’s all," Sam tried to save the situation. But it was already shot to Hell.  


Charlie took mercy on him. “And you didn’t even want to come here.”  


"What do you expect? An apology?"  


"How about a ‘thank you, Charlie, for giving me the opportunity tofinallyget laid again, I will owe you forever’?" She laughed at the plain and at the same time shocked face of Sam’s. Gabriel couldn’t keep himself from chuckling, either.  


"No," Sam decided and continued eating. "Though," he continued, directed at Gabriel, "I wouldn’t mind coming with you. Just if you want me there, of course," he added a little more silent. Why was he so self-conscious around Gabriel?

 

Like most things the hut Gabriel was supposed to work in wasn't quite big enough for Sam. He was used to it though. And maybe that made everything a lot more life-like for the medieval age — Sam supposed the people were shorter back then.

He said so much and added “That’s why you fit in perfectly” which earned him a shove into the chest.

Gabriel would have hit him on the back of his head, but that guy was a freaking tree. No way was Gabriel making a fool out of himself while trying to get some revenge. That would make everything a lot worse.

Sam didn't even stumble, even though he didn't doubt a second that the smaller man would be capable of throwing him to the ground, if he intended to do so. But that would have been rather problematic in the small hut they were currently standing in. There was a stool in one of the corners but it was currently occupied by pendants and bracelets.

“You look ridiculous by the way,” Gabriel informed him, smirking.

Sam made a face at him. “That’s not exactly my fault, is it? I didn’t build this thing.”

“One could argue that you are the one to grow to this awful size though. Not that size is a problem for me,” Gabriel winked and Sam blushed. Dammit. He sighed on the inside.

“Well that’s not my fault either.”

“Maybe you ate too much and it just unfairly translated into growing tall instead of wide,” Gabriel suggested. Talking about food made him crave something sweet. He searched through his pockets but didn't manage to find anything.

He turned his head to look at the taller man “Would you maybe like to make a run for something to eat?”

“We just had lunch!” Sam reminded.

“But that didn’t involve anything sweet, did it? So go on, be a good husband and hunt me some Tart de Bry from the hut next to where we met.“

“Whatever the hell that is,” he decided not to say anything against the husband-thing. He was quite sure that nothing he said would make Gabriel stop say those things and not saying anything was less work. If he was honest with himself he maybe didn't even mind it that much.

“It’s gingered brie tart and it is just as awesome and home-made as it sounds. While you are at it, bring some mead,“ Gabriel grinned and Sam was already halfway outside. He turned back around and raised an eyebrow. “You are gonna be drunk while working? I didn't think you were that bored of me.“

Gabriel gives him a dirty look. "I'm not bored of you. Neither am I getting drunk. It's just one cup of mead. Not a barrel." While talking he fished for some coins in his leather bag and handed them to Sam. "In case someone asks. You can also try to tell them it's my order. Maybe they'll believe you," he smiled wide and Sam turned to go.

"And, Sammy-" Gabriel called after him.

"Don't call me that," Sam said and turned back around. "Get yourself something too, if you like," Gabriel ordered. Sam nodded once, not intending to do so. Sam couldn't figure out what it was with Gabriel and sweet things. When he had been looking for a sword for Sam he had some sweet bread and whenever they had decided to take a break from fighting he had had some honey cookies. They looked all sticky but Gabriel didn't seem to mind, since he kept them in one of the many pockets of his tunic. Sam had just ignored it because honestly, that was just another weird thing about Gabriel. Something that wouldn't change even when Sam protested, just like the dirty jokes.

It took Sam some time to find the right tent but he got there eventually. He would need a map or something if he spent another day at that place.

The girl from before, Jo, was taking Sam’s order and didn’t even ask for any money.

“Thank you,” Sam said and wanted to take the plate and the cups back to where Gabriel was waiting, when Jo asked him something.

“Are you going to stay for tonight’s dinner?”

“I don’t know, why?” Sam wanted to know.

“Well, Friday’s dinner involves a lot of dancing and singing and it would be nice to see uncle Gabriel dancing for a change,” she shrugged.

“What does he usually do when he isn’t dancing?”

“Eating something sweet or drinking,” the girl laughed a little, as if she was thinking of a special incident.

“Why do you think I could break him out of that habit?”

She just raised an eyebrow at him that said ‘C’mon, really?’ and turned to another customer. It seemed like that was all he’d get for an answer. When Sam returned to the hut Gabriel was working at he sat down the food and drinks and stared at Gabriel. When he had his full attention he announced his latest decision “I am going to stay for dinner.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments and kudos if you liked it!

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know if you liked it.


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